Spirit Pulse : Mugen No Sekai [IC]

[Airen]

Cosmos Fairchild
LOVELESS, Moon Under Water
12/22/2026
Evening, Thunder Storm

---A blunt shift in atmosphere.

From the clean halls of the ever pristine mall, to a restaurant of shining wooden floors and winding paths, paths that wind around the massive figure of a cherry blossom tree, petals fluttering in a gentle night wind, conjured up by some small magic that seemed to exist over the section in it's entirety.

---Yes.

The restaurant looks much like a Japanese-style garden; fish swim in crystal clear rivers that travel alongside the foot paths, crossing under bridges and around walls to give off an almost overwhelming sense of being in the outdoors... While the mall itself was clearly in lock-down for the night, the twinkling -but vivid- nature of the stars above make it clear that this is the normal atmosphere, a massive garden illuminated by artificial starlight...

One so massive that you can't see all of it from here, although the distant figure of a lake, as well as that of some scattered buildings (awash in orange light and looking much like a bar area) along the left side of the expanse, as well as the tables at the base of the massive sakura tree down below (seeming to extend down to the second floor even) stick out as notable landmarks in your mind...

"Moon Under Water? That's where you're taking me?" She whispered, and almost lets out a laugh at how ridiculous it is. "Why would bringing me to a restaurant prove anything?"

Of course, this scenario is almost laughable to you.

Pristine or not, this restaurant would not change the reality around you, nevertheless...

In response to this obvious question, Sofia...

"Fairchild and Kingsleigh came here often on Friday Nights. It was something of a tradition for them, or so I observed in my records... I believe they liked the aesthetic, reminded them of their time in Aoyama, or something along those lines."

Sets you down and crosses her arms.

"It is an abuse of personal privacy, but I will summon up some of those 'records.'"

So saying...

She snaps her fingers.

---A pulse erupts from where she stands, and-

The silent restaurant comes to life.

It's not an overwhelming roar but rather a dull groan as many voices slowly come to life, holographic beings flickering slightly in place as tables are filled, the smell of cherry blossoms in the night wind becoming far more prevalent as an empty building becomes filled with virtual ghosts, memory data, copies of a time long in the past, or perhaps...

Only recently so?

"In my research, I relived these days a few times. They were people of interest after all, so if you look... You'll find them here, in quite a few places even..."

A pause, then:

"...So go ahead. Look around. Pick a direction and go."

She closes her eyes.

"They liked flashier spots. Most of the people that come here do."

[palad1n]

Cosmos Fairchild
LOVELESS, Moon Under Water
12/22/2026
Evening, Thunder Storm

"Fairchild and Kingsleigh came here often on Friday Nights. It was something of a tradition for them, or so I observed in my records... I believe they liked the aesthetic, reminded them of their time in Aoyama, or something along those lines."

Cosmos stood in silence, shocked at what she heard.

Mother and Aunt Alisa came here every friday night?

To LOVELESS?

It was almost unthinkable. After all, Mary Fairchild in Cosmos' eyes is the closest thing to a perfect human, a modern-day Saint, and the image of her mother going to LOVELESS simply had never crossed her mind; even now she's having trouble believing it.

It made sense in hindsight. Her mother did always attend that annual reunion in Aoyama, so having sentimental attachment to a restaurant that reminds her of that place is logical, but...

But...

"They liked flashier spots. Most of the people that come here do."

It couldn't be...

Flashier spots?

That' not... it's impossible...

Why?

How could she not know?

Illia's words, so often spoken in the past, came to her in that exact moment:

'Mary is only human, Cosmos. She's not perfect.'

...what was she thinking?

She shouldn't be freaking out over something like this, and yet...

Slowly, she took a few steps inside the restaurant.

To the massive Sakura tree down below, unsure on how to feel, and perhaps even scared on what she'd found...

[Satehi]

Eva Ellet
SLEIPNIR - Artificial Park
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

“O-oh…”

There was little else Eva could say. She thought she had an inkling of what was going on earlier, but seeing as that idea had been denied by the source of information in question… if there was one thing that she was certain about from this conversation, it was the following:

--- she didn’t have the slightest clue what Alexia was talking about.

It was hard for her to hide that she was at least a little deflated by this set of events.

The mention of alternate realities had piqued her interest, for it sounded very similar to other events that she had recently learned of- of the parallel world she had visited herself, whose inhabitants were certainly facing a plight that sounded very similar to what Alexia was describing. Their circumstances were unfortunate, and if it was possible to help them, then she certainly would have liked to do so.

Perhaps that had clouded her judgement- made her jump the gun, to borrow a colloquial expression. She was seeing connections that weren’t there. It was silly of her- answers weren’t going to show up conveniently in front of her- much less from a television show.

Still, none of that disappointment was Alexia’s fault.

“Well…”

Trying her best to hide it, she racked her brain for things to say. The latter half of what Alexia had said (aside from the bit about not minding it too much) was incomprehensible to Eva, which left…

“…sounds like an interesting television show?”

[Airen]

Hiyori
SLEIPNIR - Bottom Level, Endless Hall
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

---Faced with a similar scenario as moments before, this time, you choose a different option-!

While time isn't quite as harsh of a factor here in this instance, to dive beneath the bed is a reasonable conclusion to come to, after all, the hallway outside was unending, cyclical, trying to escape from the room itself would simply lead to you being spotted by one of the two outside (although Miss Smug strangely seemed to be on your side, judging by the timing of the last intervention) which meant that your best bet was remaining somewhere inside the room, after all...

It's sort of reverse psychology?

The obvious action is to get out of here, therefore, the best thing to do is subvert their expectations by doubling down-!

Or something like that...

If your User was here this would be way easier, you could just straight fight and subdue whoever was running around firing off a gun like some sort of psychopath, but the battle of a lone COMP against a Tamer-level opponent wasn't one in your favor, so...

"..."

Again, your best rigid rabbit impression.

---You hear quite a few things in the next minute or so, the sounds of two different footsteps -both sprinting- echoing down and throughout the halls as the two continue their hit and run esque battle, brief flashes of reiki burning back and forth as sounds like electrical discharges and gunfire become a symphony all their own... There's the sound of laughter, of something heavy and metallic slamming into something heavy and metallic... Although it's difficult to say if it's two people smashing their weapons together, or simply the sound of some sort of phenomena clattering against the alien steel walls of the ship, but whatever it is...

The sounds stop shortly after that, with one more burst -this one massive- of something that didn't exactly feel like Reiki, no...

Considering your nature, and the nature of this ship, it felt more like...

Some sort of OOPart had just went off?

Items that didn't follow the 'rules' of the World, and thus had a 'unique' sort of feel to them... They were rather rare, mostly locked up in storage on this ship, but you had been around them once or twice, and this feeling... Rather than Reiki...

Was it... Mana...?

It was certainly an unusual form of 'magical energy,' but...

With it's passage (and the roaring sound of some sort of massive air wave tearing down the hallways outside) the battle comes to an end, a single set of footsteps remain, and...

They come into the room.

---For awhile, they just stand at the entrance.

There's the sound of something like blood dripping on the floor, and heavy breathing, but...

"Ha... Ok... That was a little rough... Not gonna lie... But I got her..."

It's Ms. Smug.

She shuts the door behind her, leaning against the door with a mild groan as she slowly slides down the wall, and taking a peek outside of your box, well...

Seems like she'd been shot a few times.

Not with plasma rounds, but something more physical, actual bullets, or at least some bullet-esque item, but...

"You...tch... Still in here... Little doll...?"

She's talking to you, obviously, but...

Since she's unsure about your presence, you...

[Airen]

Eva Ellet
SLEIPNIR - Common Room (?)
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

“…sounds like an interesting television show?”

---For a moment, the woman actually seems surprised at your answer.

It's a little strange, because she had clearly been talking nonsense up until now (and indeed, had even encouraged you not to look into it too much) but for some reason, she seems genuinely surprised by the ultimate conclusion you had come too...

It's bizarre.

An almost awkward moment between the two of you, before...

"Heh..."

...She chuckles.

"Yeah, it's pretty interesting. Sequel to another show you know? Some people say it's a little similar on the surface, but..."

She closes an eye.

"There's definitely some twists here or there~"

---And with that, the journey comes to an end with the woman giggling to herself for some reason... The place you find yourself now isn't all that removed from the cafeteria (you can still hear the others laughing and talking just down the admittedly long hall) but the door leading to the so called common room was sealed quite heavily, akin to a blast door on a spaceship, but the wave of a hand turns the light from red to green (whether it be because she had access to everything on the ship or this was simply an 'open' room was unclear) and you -after a brief moment of thought- step inside...

To find an area that seems almost like the cross between an airship and a living room, or more specifically, the living room of an airship aboard another airship. Walking into the room is akin to walking into another 'atmosphere' entirely, the somewhat colder nature of the steel SLEIPNIR gone, cold drafts and sterile steel replaced by carpeted floors and warm air pumping in from... Somewhere...?

There are scattered couches all around a single massive television set hanging from the ceiling, and behind which is clearly some sort of...Steering Wheel? Helm? Sitting just in front of what is definitely a control terminal for an airship, and massive windows that reveal the outside of this place, namely, that this 'room' is looking out into what seems like the hangar bay of the SLEIPNIR...

"When I'm here, Adala makes me use my own ship as my relaxation space, it's really cruel of her-!"

...So it is a ship.

A ship inside of a ship, likely functioning as a sort of built in emergency vessel for if the main ship was ever compromised...

That, or a simple bizarre design decision...

Considering this ship's nature as an alien craft, it could be anything really, maybe it was simply easier to use other ships as common rooms than it was to build one from scratch and install it into the ship's mainframe?

You couldn't tell.

...Wasn't exactly your area of expertise, still...

As you wander in, and as Alexia explains how 'cruel' her student is to her with those same crocodile tears as before, well...

"Yo, Sensei, ya finally back? Bring anything to eat?"

A rough sounding (but still female) voice echoes out from behind one of the couches.

"Tried to go to the cafeteria to eat, but they said I wasn't on the list, so no dice, you know? Kinda mean of that kid of yours!"

She sounds sort of punkish, and the figure that emerges from behind the crimson comforters is one in fashionably (?) torn jeans and a black jacket, a fair bit taller than you, and...

Vaguely familiar looking for some reason?

Either way...

"Eh? Bring you something? What's wrong with the food we have?"

Alexia counters like any parent would, claiming that they have food at home, to which-

"I'm tired of instant noodles, Teach-!"

The other woman says only that, before her eyes focus -or rather snap- to you, and...

"...You adoptin another stray?"

...She asks a question that... Really...

Is hard to decide how you should feel about...

Encountered: ???

[Satehi]

Eva Ellet
SLEIPNIR - Common Room (?)
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

This is illogical.

Eva Ellet understands that much. But even though she can logically recognize this fact, it doesn’t change how she feels about the comments the new girl has to say.

It’s not a strong emotion by any metric. Less than upset, but more than nothing…

Peeved.

Perhaps that was a good word for it.

Eva Ellet felt a little peeved at being called a stray. She did not think the label was appropriate. It was a silly, illogical thing to feel grieved at- if asked personally, Eva Ellet would have never thought herself to be particularly concerned about it- and yet, the existence of an effect on her mood was slight but undeniable. It really shouldn’t- the girl knew nothing about her, and her comments were almost certainly not made with any particularly malicious intent (although clearly not any benevolent ones, either), and yet…

Between that, and the way the girl dressed and talked, Eva couldn’t help but have a slight negative impression of the girl.

“I’m not sure what you’re imagining, but I was simply accompanying Miss Alexia on her way back from the cafeteria. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Feeling a need to deny whatever the other girl was implying, she decided to do it herself rather than wait for Alexia to explain as she normally would. Turning over to Alexia as she was done, she continued.

“Then, Miss Alexia, seeing as you already have company here… while it was interesting to talk with you, if there is nothing else that you require of me, I will be heading back to the cafeteria.”

[Verg Avesta]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"Mhm."

Currently concentrated on shaping the remaining rice just right to lay the fatty tuna on, Blaise let out an agreeing noise through his focus. His eyes momentarily wavered towards his sister, but then it was back to work. With some customers still present, he would have to at least finish this batch before he could spare any time to talk. Especially with creatures like the talking bears (Were two of them high-fiving? The world may never know...) present, since those sorts of beings tended to eat a lot.

Well... not as lot as the two ever-hungry pits sitting at the side of the stall.

Just where were they even packing away all that food?

Did he want to know?

Probably not.

... But then again, seeing them, both Tsukiko and the girl, enjoy his cooking so much definitely put a smile to his face, even if he tried his best to keep his usual poised look.

"... There."

With the final batch (for now) done, Blaise wiped his hands on his apron and turned his focus towards his sister. He gestured for her to sit down. Immediately, the eyes of a little brother noticed the signs of exhaustion on her face. Immediately he switched gears and poured a cup of barley tea for her, set it in front of Noriko, and reached for a plate he had set aside. This plate of fresh sushi was placed next to the tea, ready for the older girl to consume.

"I was saving that in case a certain one-eyed interloper showed up, but... well, looks like she retreated for now. So, dig in. Sounds like you need it," Blaise spoke up. "Oh, and uh... yeah. That's Isamu. He was the guy we brought to the infirmary the other day."

After folding his hands across his chest, he glanced towards the other boy and gave him a passing nod. Then his eyes returned to his sister.

"... He helped out a lot today. Been a real... bro," the blonde youth admitted. "So no, he isn't from school. You already know those guys wouldn't bother. Running a food stall just for the hell of it here is probably beneath them. Not to mention they're too scared that somebody would see them hanging out with me. Tch..."

Talking about school had, yet again, put Blaise in a bad mood. His mind momentarily returned to the time he had spent there, the looks his classmates had given him, the whispers and rumours in the hallways... but what did he care? He was doing his best to help people out, help his city and all its residents, so if they saw it as somehow wrong, and him as some sort of juvenile criminal because of it... that was their problem. He wouldn't stop beating up bullies and thugs just because it made him look like a bad guy in the eyes of bunch of spoiled kids like them. Not to mention he did a lot more than just get into fights...

A dark frown passed by the boy's face.

He didn't miss school. Nor did he miss his classmates. He was fine with things being just the way they were.

Yeah. This was fine. This was more important anyways.

If they didn't give him the time of day, or if they just blindly believed random rumours, then... he would just ignore them as well.

That was better for everybody.

"... So? Long day?" He switched topics, trying to get away from the annoying feeling in his chest. "You sound tired."

Then, a hint of suspicion crept into his eyes.

"... You didn't come all the way over here just to complain about how I spend my days again, did you, nee-san?"

[Airen]

Eva Ellet
SLEIPNIR - Common Room (?)
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

“I’m not sure what you’re imagining, but I was simply accompanying Miss Alexia on her way back from the cafeteria. Nothing more, nothing less.”

---While not exactly impolite, there was a certain coldness in your response.

The way the girl had spoken to you earlier was bizarre, while one could easily come to the assumption that it was simply in Alexia's nature to bring wandering people around with her (for some reason) the way the girl had spoken to you had seemed to imply something else, not simply that she had asked that because of the nature of your companion, but rather...

Because she had simply decided you were a stray by yourself.

---Yes.

That's the feeling you got, that she had judged you right away for personal reasons rather than circumstantial ones, and in response to your words, she...

"..."

Just frowns at first.

---For some reason, looking at her makes your head hurt, for some reason...

"...Sorry, didn't mean to call ya a stray."

...This feels like a lie.

Her words say one thing, but her eyes...

They're definitely the eyes of someone who thinks they're looking at a lost child...

Or something else perhaps?

Whatever it was...

She smiles...

Although it feels more like a smirk.

---You're not sure why.

"Teach has a bad habit of trying to tutor everyone around her, looks real fishy I say, but what can you do about it? Can't say no when the Saint Vivienne's founder wants you as a student, easy shot to big things."

She complains.

Is it to you?

Or to herself?

---Impossible to say.

Not that you really care too much, meanwhile...

“Then, Miss Alexia, seeing as you already have company here… while it was interesting to talk with you, if there is nothing else that you require of me, I will be heading back to the cafeteria.”

"Eh?"

Seemingly confused by the rather bizarre exchange between the two of you, Alexia tilts her head a bit to the side at your words.

"Company? You mean Evita here?"

She points at the azure haired woman with an amused smile.

"She doesn't count as company. Not cute at all. Talented, but next to no work ethic."

She sighs, while the blue-haired woman -this Evita- scoffs at the words, eyes basically rolling into the back of her head...

"You don't have to leave because she's rude~ We can still talk about all sorts of things, like the first time I met your mother, or this weird fortune teller I saw once... Kind of get her vibes from you, actually..."

Eh?

Some of that is random, but part of it...?

Your mom...?

"Although, if you really want to leave I won't stop you of course, that'd just be weird of me."

Either way...

This is a bizarre person...

But she at least seems to be trying to befriend you...?

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"Eh?"

---Looking for all the world like a criminal being cornered by the police, the nervous laugh, when combined with the way her eyes took a sudden, inexplicable interest in basically anything that wasn't your face, cemented that the older woman had in fact come here to complain at you, naturally...

"N-No, that'd just be crazy, right? Who'd come all the way here just to do that...?"

She does her best to not let on to this fact.

It's a genuine attempt, bless her heart, but...

Noriko had never been a very good liar, she was a police officer at heart -one of the old type, from before Tamers took over everything- so those sorts of dishonest actions, well...

She wasn't very good at them-!

Of course, she had listened carefully to your earlier words, the origin of Isamu, and the implied negative feelings towards your classmates, but...

Today...

"I think it's a good thing you're hanging out with someone your own age, so I certainly wouldn't come here to complain!"

Today... She doesn't seem to want to struggle with you over any of it.

Like she said, as far as she was concerned... This was a good thing...

A step in what she might see as the right direction?

Bit hard to tell with her...

"But yeah, bit of a long day..."

She sighs, deciding to go along with your attempt to flee an obviously uncomfortable topic.

"Got called into the Office early, some out-of-town kids causing trouble in the local aquarium, breaking things, manifesting curses... It was a bit of a pain to deal with, they were already gone by the time I got there, so it was all detective work and clean up duty."

She frowns.

"Literal clean-up duty, like literally scrubbing hostile mud off of windows..."

She pauses here, grumbling to herself in between sips of her barley tea, and the crowds around you continue to surge as the various unhostile residents continue their slow filtration out from the area...

Looked like the 'day' was coming to an end here too, in spite of the constant dusk-like atmosphere of the place... Although, strangely enough, Tsukiko seems to have become somewhat alarmed upon looking over here, although the two talking bears from before cut line of sight before you can really figure out why...

"Then I heard you went walking off with a certain bad-influence, so I had to come make sure he didn't get you in trouble like he used to get your dad in trouble... Tony Redgrave, I swear..."

She grumbles again, although there's a hint of amusement in it as well, like she sorta disapproved of the man's behavior but...

Liked him all the same?

"But it seems like things are fine..."

She sets down the cup, smiling contently, again with that weirdly proud look on her face before-

"Actually, this is an opportunity right?"

-freezing in place, as if an idea had struck her out of the blue like a thunderbolt-!

"You think this friend of yours would want to come over? Watch movies or something? It'll just be me and your Mom around tonight, so I think things will be pretty sane at home-!"

---The sanest two people in a house of insane people.

The fact that she had to bring it up like that spoke volumes really...

[Verg Avesta]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

Blaise blinked in surprise at his sister, caught off-guard by the question.

Would Isamu want to... come over? What, like... asking a friend to visit? Something people sometimes did in that school he never attended? Just go hang out with each other at the other one's place? The idea initially made Blaise frown a little. After all, he went over to the hideout practically every day. And they "hung out" with Isamu there. Yet, for some reason, this felt... different. Totally different. In fact, for some reason it almost felt like it was his first time doing something like this. Or rather, first time in a... long time. Maybe he had someone or two over in his childhood, but...

He quietly pushed away the hazy memories of his early days. They weren't about to get any clearer, and what good would they bring?

"I, uh... I guess I can... ask him?" Blaise replied, awkwardly scratching his cheek and feeling somewhat flustered for some reason. "I mean, if it's just you and Mom, then... maybe it's alright and -- wait, mom's home?"

That surprised him a little bit. Blaise's mother hadn't been around for a while, on the account of his moron of an old man having gone up and disappearing. So hearing that she had come back made his eyebrows rise a little. Not that he didn't like hearing that. It had been a while since he'd seen his mother, and... well, as much as he would have never admitted it out loud, he had missed her being around. The house had felt somewhat empty lately.

Still, asking for a friend to come over, huh?

Wait, actually... wasn't there something he had to do before that?

Then again, maybe he could combine the two objectives?

"Actually... there might be other people we could invite as well," Blaise continued, putting hands on his hip. "See, we found this kid, Fia, who seems to have gotten separated from her parents. Can't just leave her alone in a place like this, right? And then there's the third person who came with me and Isamu. She's... well, she's a bit weird, eats way too much and is pretty awkward all around, but she's a good guy, too. Helped us out a lot today. Actually, just hold on a minute - I'll call them both."

With that, Blaise turned around towards the direction of ground zero when it came food destruction, and lifted his hand to get their attention.

"Hey! Fia! Tsukki! Come here for a sec, would you?"

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"I, uh... I guess I can... ask him?" Blaise replied, awkwardly scratching his cheek and feeling somewhat flustered for some reason. "I mean, if it's just you and Mom, then... maybe it's alright and -- wait, mom's home?"

"Mhm."

Setting her cup down and folding her hands together, the older woman chuckles at your reaction, confirming the question with a simple nod of her head.

"Popped back up at the end of my shift, or well... I found her asleep on the couch at home, seemed like she was pretty tired... Had to make her dinner before she'd let me leave the house..."

Another chuckle.

---Of course, while that does sound somewhat like your mother, well...

She had gone off to try to find your dad awhile ago, and communications between the two of you had been strangely absent? It was somewhat bizarre, especially in the current age, where so many forms of communication existed that it was frankly harder to find someway to truly be by yourself outside of home, but...

She had found a way somehow.

Probably got pulled into whatever nonsense your old man had gotten himself into, considering that guy, he might've gotten swallowed up in some space-time distortion or abducted by aliens, embracing the insanity that the rest of the house seems to resist to varying degrees... Of course, it's not like you knew exactly what he was up to either, annoyingly, he had literally just vanished one day, but...

Tch...

It was probably something stupid, right?

"Actually... there might be other people we could invite as well," Blaise continued, putting hands on his hip. "See, we found this kid, Fia, who seems to have gotten separated from her parents. Can't just leave her alone in a place like this, right? And then there's the third person who came with me and Isamu. She's... well, she's a bit weird, eats way too much and is pretty awkward all around, but she's a good guy, too. Helped us out a lot today. Actually, just hold on a minute - I'll call them both."

"Lost child?"

The older woman tilts her head questioningly, as if her brain had automatically decided to try figuring out exactly why a lost child would appear in a place like this, before ultimately coming to the conclusion that the why may actually be irrelevant-!

"Yeah, I can handle that, part of the job, easy."

She nods, the smile returning even as her gaze moves past you, looking to see this kid and other hypothetical friend, who...

"Ok!"

Fia cheerfully responds.

---Her grip in Tsukiko is like that of death itself, but not from the perspective of the child no... Having latched onto the older woman's hand with all the cheerfulness of a child that had found an older kid they happened to like, everything about the vampire's body language has shifted upon her being pulled in this direction, looking for all the world as if she wanted -no, needed- to escape from this scenario, while simultaneously being unwilling to shake the girl off of her-!

It's a bit bizarre, was there something you were forgetting about this?

Well...

Either way, the two fall back behind the dispersing crowds once more for a few moments, and when they return well...

"...You called?"

---The vampire has seemingly acquired (stolen?) a mask from someone or something nearby? It's definitely nothing particularly fancy or even supernatural, just an unpainted fox mask that hides the upper portion of her face, and...

Her voice...

Has gone down a few pitches...?

More breathy?

---It's a bit of a bizarre sight, enough that Noriko turns her head the other way now, an almost visible question mark appearing over her head, but-

"Oh! It's Big Sis Nori!"

-it's the words of the child that really take a sudden hammer to the proceedings.

Said in a very affectionate way, like a child that has suddenly found a family member, the little one launches herself forward in a motion that is half hug-half tackle, driving the police officer to the ground with surprising strength-!

"Eh?! Eh?!"

On the ground... The woman's expression is hard to define.

Shocked from two different impacts, that of a cute voice calling her something quite bizarre, as well as the impact with the ground, well...

It takes her a moment to really come back to the world of reality, but when she does...

"Big Sis Nori?"

She looks down at the girl happily rubbing her face against her stomach, looks up at you, and...

"...What did your dad do this time?!"

Why was she asking you?!

[Verg Avesta]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"...What did your dad do this time?!"

You shitty old man, so this whole thing was your fault after aaaaaaaall!?

For just a moment, Blaise's thoughts started reflecting his honest emotions as he grabbed his head and sunk to his knees, realizing the gravity of what was going on. Of course, there had been few innocent hints here and there, few points of foreshadowing he had delibirately ignored, knowing that most of the times it was best to let sleeping dragons lie. But now that Fia had reacted like... this, well... it was less about clues and foreshadowing and more of a horrifying reality staring them straight in the eyes and giving a good ol' slap across the fast.

--- All because that damn freak couldn't keep it in his pants!!!

"... So this is what he was up to, huh? This is why the bastard disappeared? He went off to do... this?" Blaise murmured, half in response to his sister, half as something of an accusation to the man not present. "... We're screwed... we're so screwed... when Mom finds out... we're absolutely screwed... whole Aoyama is...!"

Or... maybe...

--- There was still a chance.

At least a momentary one, something to distract her with until they'd find some way to deal with this whole thing. Yes, it tied back to what Noriko had talked about before. If Mom was distracted by the fact that Blaise was bringing friends home for the first time... maybe ever, she wouldn't start questioning the existence of a certain little girl, not to mention some parts of her physical make-up that rang more than a little familiar.

But in that case, just one friend wouldn't be enough.

Therefore...!

"Tsukki..."

Blaise, finally staggering back to his feet, landed his hand onto the vampire's shoulder and gripped it tight. He didn't know (or rather, in the current situation he didn't exactly remember) why she was acting and dressing so bizarre right now, but if anything, that was a blessing in disguise. The more bizarre his other friends, the more his mother would be distracted by them.

"... You and Isamu... you should come visit us tonight. We could watch some movies and hang out. You'd get to meet my mom too. I'm sure she'd be interested in meeting you two," Blaise spoke with a little forced voice. "Enough that she wouldn't question a little girl before we'd manage smuggle her out tomorrow, and try to learn how to deal with this... situation."

The last words were spoken more to Noriko than to Tsukiko, informing her of the plan that was forming in the mind of the blonde youth. However, right afterwards, Blaise flashed an awkward, strained smile towards the vampire, and tightened his grip a bit, as if indicating that he wasn't about to take a no for a answer. Not when his house, his city, and most importantly, his peaceful life was at stake.

"You're fine with that, right, Tsukki?" He asked, putting an emphasis on her name.

And then the boy awkwardly gazed at the strange scene next to him, of Fia hugging his sister (Yes, his sister) and acting like they had met before, or perhaps like she had been told a lot about the older girl. This kid, this Fia, who breathed fire, was impervious to fire, and had the draconic appetite he was so familiar with. And as those pieces started falling into place, an awkward sort of question came to his lips.

One that he eventually had to ask from Noriko.

"Hey, nee-san..."

Blaise frowned at the thought.

"... Did he just have a... thing​... for dragons?"

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"You're fine with that, right, Tsukki?"

---Even through the mask, you can tell that the vampire's immediate gut reaction is to refuse the request. It is not because she hates the idea of it, oh no, the reason for this refusal would be quite clear to those in a less strained sense of mind, having something to do with the police officer on the ground, but-

"Yeah, that sounds fine."

...Before she can refuse, Isamu, her effective landlord, appears from amongst the crowd, clapping a hand on her other shoulder in a friendly sort of way.

"Let's meet his mom."

---He hadn't heard all of it.

No, just the basics.

But he was clever enough to put two on two together on his own, the desperation in your voice wasn't something he could miss, and if there was something he could do for a friend he would probably do it, so...

He's okay with being what's effectively a long-term distraction.

"And since I won't be at home... No way for anyone to get in..."

---As well as mild threats towards the vampire to get her to agree... Truly, it was a trap that could only truly ensnare a freeloader, someone who would be crawling around cursing the world tomorrow as her strength left her, like a cat that had gotten so used to being fed at preset intervals that it had forgotten how to take care of itself, and...

"...Okay... Just... Let me get some stuff from home first..."

...Bullied into submission, the pale woman relents -still using that breathy voice from before- while Isamu just shakes his head, meanwhile...

"... Did he just have a... thing​... for dragons?"

Noriko frowns.

It's not a question she had ever considered, and indeed, the way her eyes narrow at the thought seem to hint at a certain sort of understanding, as if maybe this line of thinking really did make sense, before...

"Well... Maybe... I sort of think he didn't have a type before he met your Mom..."

She rises, Fia still attached to her stomach, hands raised in a way that made it clear she wasn't sure if she should actually touch the kid or not...

"Could be dragons... Could just be he likes forceful women... But..."

She looks down again.

"...Maybe it is just dragon girls... Yeah, that might make sense..."

She chuckles... Although there's some despair in there too...

Because the house-life has suddenly fallen into jeopardy.

Nevertheless...

"But okay... Isamu... I remember you now, brought you to the nurse."

She smiles.

"Yeah, that's me. Nice to meet you properly-!"

---He does his best to be a respectful person at a glance, the type of friend a parent would like, although he may just be that sort anyways deep down...?

"Mhm."

Either way, her attention turns to Tsukiko next (who seems to be sweating a bit in spite of being a vampire) and...

"And you're this... Tsuki...?"

She eyes her up and down, pausing for a moment to really look at her skin tone, before nodding to herself and-

"He's surprisingly okay with touching you... You his secret girlfriend?"

-asking a question that feels almost like she had just pulled out a gun and shot the both of you with it, all in a teasing older sister voice-?!

Perhaps she too needs a distraction from the impossibility wrapped around her leg.

[Verg Avesta]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"Aah, no."

With the reflexes of a little brother who had heard this question in million situations before, basically any time he was involved with any girl whatsoever in any way, shape or form - and when Noriko nee-san was present - Blaise dodged the bullet launched his way and performed a magnificent verbal hip-shot of his own, like a gunslinger at high noon. He hadn't grown this old in the Pendragon household, guided by this specific elder sister, without learning to expect this and always be ready.

And after all... it was true, right?

It's not like Tsukiko saw him in that way. He was just her friend and someone who cooked for her - for free.

Meddler, if anything else.

"You know I don't go for girls who lie about their age," Blaise bluntly continued. "Never have."

Yes. More than anything else, that was the reason. Blaise's pet peeve that he refused to let go, even if the world around him had gone mad. He would never ever, never in a million years, not even if the Demonic Server froze over and world came to an end in a collision of alternate realities and timelines - in other words, never ever ever ever - get involved with a girl who wasn't the age they said they were. Whether it was a multiple decades old tamer who still looked to be in their early 20's, or an ancient being who liked to prance around in the form of a girl way too young.

Yes. He had standards. Blaise Pendragon had standards.

--- Never ever.

"Besides, she's just a freeloader I'm helping," Blaise then added. "And to top it all off, a va---"

"NO SHE'S NOT! BANCHOU WOULD NEVER HAVE RELATIONS WITH A FOUR-EYES LIKE THIS!"

Ah.

Kaguya was finally here.

"Ane-san, believe ya me - I'd never let a no-good punk like this 'ere get their dirty mittens on Banchou!" The bunny-eared delinquent exclaimed, greeting Noriko in her usual way of a deep, deep bow. "I keep constant vigilance over 'im, like I promised ya! No teenage hoe or a gold digger or a sneaky gyaru bitch gets within' thirty feet 'a him, fer I'm keepin' a close, close watch! Ya hafta worry none, Ane-san! I'd never let a girl this batty do anything ta him!"

At this point, Blaise was averting his gaze awkwardly and scratching his cheek. As intense as Kaguya was, and even though she probably meant well, these were still some awfully harsh words towards Tsukiko...

... Maybe this was a brewing disaster he should stay far away from.

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

"..."

Is it the patience of a saint? Or simply the fact that she can't retaliate properly right now?

Mask expressionless, but eyes slowly beginning to surge with -mostly metaphorical- flames, a certain dark-haired vampire had more or less taken your words stoically... While she had been somewhat affected by Noriko's invisible gun, your own words hadn't done much (it was the truth after all, even though the talk about her age was probably uncomfortable) but when Kaguya had started running her mouth, well...

Her hands had unconsciously formed into something like claws, looking for all the world as if she wanted to just grab ahold of the hologram in front of her and do...

Something?

Bite?

Slam?

Hypnotize?

It was unclear, but-!

"Ah, good good, constant vigilance Kaguya."

Noriko either doesn't notice the hostility signs, or chooses not to notice the hostility signs, instead simply nodding to her underling with a smile.

"But ah, same as ever... No one that lies about their age huh? Still a little harsh..."

The eternally youthful officer says with that same smile, before-

"So, which is it? Younger or older than you look?"

-without shame, she questions the vampire out of the blue; vampire who seems to be kept from grabbing at the hologram only by Isamu's hand on her shoulder, but still muttering some things under her breath, and...

"Uh... Older... I believe...?"

The suddenness of the question makes her answer it truthfully, not just in context-

"I uh... Can remember the early 2000s, but woke up here a few weeks ago... Kind of a big shift, guess I fell asleep...?"

-but in voice, her normal voice coming out for a second before being replaced by the breathy one again, an occurrence that Noriko definitely notices this time, but again chooses to more or less ignore...

Or at least seems to ignore.

Considering her, she may just be making mental notes, for deployment at a later time.

"Amnesia case... Huh... Well, stasis is one of those things that makes your age tricky I guess..."

She sighs.

"The world was simpler back in the day..."

And her own age shows a bit...

"But this is good... We might be able to distract her with just these two..."

A pause, then...

"Unless you have any other friends I don't know about...?"

...She was trying to make this into quite the thing, wasn't she?

[Airen]

Ludwig Karlfeldt
???

---A surge of colors.

---A surge of pain.

---A surge of memories.

---A surge of information,

---The warmth of an embrace.

It's all a storm, a storm that comes with the gradient light, a storm that wipes away the battlefield, the twisted darkness, the curse screaming in your ears and the lost family that had been the source of it all, yes...

For a time, it is overwhelming.

For a time, you lose track of absolutely everything around you.

Succeeding in a moment of desperation, linking your mind up to 'theirs' with a force that Ludwig Karlfeldt should not be able to make manifest in this moment, you arrive in an impossible place, the depths of someone else's consciousness, far below the surface that you normally explore, to the point where your errant mind can make out not just words but images, where the physical world falls away as you lose your conscious connection to it, and your 'reality' becomes this, the cognitive mind, the inner thoughts, the errant memories, yes...

In some ways, this could be called a Dive to the Heart.

A Dive to the Inner Sea.

Or perhaps simply a Dive to the Trauma?

Regardless of it's nature, or how you managed to do it, here you are, and here is...

---This place.

You can remember this place very well...

The feeling is the same as it always was... Perhaps because you know it so well yourself, the cold feeling of the air remains prevalent... It's a dark wind, always was, an invisible malice drifting down the corridor towards you from that room you know so well...

---This isn't the reality.

You know this instinctively, that this is simply the depths of someone else's psyche, and yet...

---It still sends shivers down your spine...

Still, while you can no longer reach your real form, your body remains to you as an avatar of sorts inside this psyche... In comparison to the agony you had felt before coming here, this 'thought form' body is a paradise, a simple projection of your mind that can't actually feel anything, that only exists for the purpose of making it possible for you to 'operate' inside of LUCID's thoughts, but...

While it is there... It is also fading...

In and out, like a shadow being cast on the wall by a dying flame...

---In the end, your life is probably still tied to your real physical form... Regardless of whether or not you can feel it now, the reality of your existence is one that lies a step away from death, when it ceases, you may just cease as well, even separate from it as you are, but...

"..."

...Even as you contemplate this, footsteps appear inside this place.

Slow and confident, they appear alongside the ringing of distant bells... The bells atop the Karlfeldt mansion, those that ring out every hour on the hour, counting down the time, but right now...

It feels more like funeral bells.

Church bells.

Bells to announce the coming of the reaper, and alongside this, that approaching person, someone who should not be real -and thus should not be able to acknowledge you inside the depths of a memory...

Looks you right in the eyes as she passes you by, heading for that door:

Spoiler:

"...Come along then boy. You're not the sort that has time to waste, right?"

[Verg Avesta]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

... I can't believe she managed to hold herself back.

For some reason, Blaise felt an odd surge of pride as he looked at Tsukiko's masked form. Sure enough, she was dressed weird as all hell and the aura of dark flames resonating from her promised that Kaguya was in for a hell once Noriko's back was turned, but so far, the vampire had been able to keep calm. Or, well, not calm. But at least she hadn't caused a scene. That was good, very good. It might have been because she realized the importance of what was going on here, or perhaps it was because of that nagging something that Blaise felt like he was forgetting here, but at the very least, a massive headache had been avoided.

With a subtle flourish of his hand, Blaise flashed a sign to the bespectacled vampire. While the rest of his hand was in a closed fist, his pinky and his ring finger were both up. This was aimed straight upwards, otherwise hidden by his folded arms.

In other words:

--- Good job. Double portions of dessert for you tonight.

The vampire deserved a reward for putting up with the loudmouthed COMP AI.

But with that out of the way...

"Unless you have any other friends I don't know about...?"

Blaise's brow furrowed. Nee-san was starting to make this into a bit of a spectacle wasn't she? It wasn't like it was so unheard of, or rare! Sure, he might not have brought friends home before, but still... this was starting to feel a little embarrassing. Even if the main aim was to distract mom with these friends so that they could survive till tomorrow, it felt like there were also ulterior motives at play here - especially from the ever-young police officer.

One way or another, it felt as if his peaceful day was going to come crashing down.

No, it most definitely was.

Things had been going from good to ridiculous in a hurry, and he could practically smell that further trouble was hiding behind the corner, biding its time.

That was why, after heaving a loud sigh and scratching his head in frustration, the blonde youth made a fateful decision.

"... Let's see. Knowing my luck today, probably."

With that, Blaise, in all his fundoshi-and-apron-wearing glory, spun around on his heels and faced the remains of the crowd that had gathered at the beach stall. His hands were on his hips and his eyes were scanning the crowd, trying to see any suspicious, skulking figures that were paying far too much attention to the conversation than should have been normal.

"Alright, you lot! Anyone else planning on getting involved with these shenanigans? I know you're out there so don't even try to pretend otherwise!" Blaise bellowed out, leveling a glare at the group as a whole. "Now's the time to raise your hand and step forward, or take a hike! I'm not about to tolerate anyone sneaking after us and trying to start something after midnight - we get enough noise complaints from the neighbours as is!"

The intensity in his eyes then doubled, coming across as a threatening flash.

"This goes double for any yahoos thinking of picking a fight later tonight for mysterious, vaguely explained, or completely nonsensical reasons!"

[Zurvan]

Ludwig Karlfeldt
???

Once again, reality shifts before the ESPer. Or perhaps it's merely the visage conjured up by an ailing mind...

No... at the very end you've felt it. A connection, far beyond and much more familiar than the Telepath could manage...
Then again, that may have been to be expected, as the entity LUCID is one Ludwig certainly knew well.

Much like this scene, an all too familiar scene.

The very same malicious energy flows even from beyond those closed doors. They seem smaller now then when the boy first faced them, yet the aura still is as bone chilling as it always was.
To speak nothing of the full extent of the pit beyond it...

As if this cursed vision wasn't enough however, the Telepath instantly recognizes the meaning behind the toiling of the bells.

Announcing the arrival of the pillar of the Karlfeldt family.

A reaper clad in flesh.

And yet, despite of that... no rather because of everything that's happened.

---For what may be the first time, she's a welcome sight.

"Yes... seems I keep running out of time these days."

Somewhat instinctively, the boy had lowered his head towards the most esteemed of the family, but now wasn't the time for such things.

Now was the time to face the past... and reclaim what was once lost.

And so the boy raises his head and steels himself for what lies ahead.

With his own eyes, he shall witness the truth.

No longer shall he be lost, for he decided to observe everything inside that despair filled darkness.

And hopefully... he can find

what he had lost

what he sought

within that malice.

He takes the first step, once again back to that pit of nightmares.

To find them.

For even an all-consuming darkness filled with despair, doesn't have to be void of light.

"...I'm going to save them."

Determined words leave his lips, even as his very being is risking erasure.

To others it might seem meaningless, but there are no meaningless things... not for the fool that dares defy fate.

"Can I ask for your help...?"

But perhaps, he doesn't have to do it all alone...

[Kuroyuki]

Hiyori
SLEIPNIR - Bottom Level, Endless Hall
11/16/2026
Monday - Morning

Now that the Alert phase has been triggered, there can only be one option! Hide until their guard drops! Aside from Miss Smug, I still haven’t been seen by an enemy so I can still have them believe that it must have been their imagination. They definitely seem to be like the stereotypical unstable angry villain that randomly lashes out for some reason and then brushes it off later! Because even if they attacked the bookcase where I was at originally, they still didn’t hit me so… I didn’t exist! Definitely!

I’m rambling to myself? Nonsense! I’m definitely not concerned about the fight outside this room. Or how the reiki and bullet noises seem to fade away then suddenly be right next to the door again. The occasional clashing noises of something. I’m not concerned that Miss Smug covered for me and then ran out the room before I could consider helping her. Not at all! Especially not when it feels like some hidden OOPart was used by someone and the fighting suddenly stopped! Or when I realized that the OOPart used mana instead of reiki. Not worrying at all!

W-wait! Are those footsteps coming back to this room?! Why are you coming back here?! There’s nothing in this room! Nothing!

"Ha... Ok... That was a little rough... Not gonna lie... But I got her..."

That voice?! Miss Smug?! You didn’t lose against that obvious midboss villain?! Then that means you’re the user of that OOPart!

"You...tch... Still in here... Little doll...?"

When I finally took a peek... Miss Smug... She was injured all over! I slowly started scooching my cardboard box out from its hide spot underneath the bed. Stopping right when the box cleared the bed entirely.

“Rigid Rabbit commencing Virtuous Healing!”

Dramatically flipping the box off of me and casting Diarhan on Miss Smug!

“But you can call me Hiyori! Miss...”

Smug!

[Airen]

Blaise Pendragon
Demonic Server, Hali Bay
11/16/2026
Afternoon, Clear Skies

---You bite the bullet.

While you could almost certainly escape now with just these designated friends, you knew how your life worked, the inevitability of fate that seem to pursue the Pendragon Family throughout both time and space, chasing them like they were protagonists the World could just designate to fix it's problems... A possibility that was worryingly possible actually, considering all the strange things that seemed to happen around family and family friends, so-!

Best to just get it over with now right?

Keep em where you can see em right?!

Surely there's someone out there who might just stalk you and the others home otherwise, and-!

---Certainly, a lot of suspicious individuals dart into the shadows at your words. The talking bears dive into the ocean and disappear from sight, some shadow runs off into the nearby woods, Tony starts whistling suspiciously, gaze darting up into the sky as if he hadn't been eavesdropping, and a bunch of jack frosts in an overcoat go scattering across the sands of the beach in different directions, but...

At first, no one comes forward.

---But this is a lie the world will tell you.

You are not convinced, indeed, doubling your glare reveals still more, yes...

---A hand in the distance, lazily drifting above the waters as if trying to get a teacher to call on her.

The owner of said hand is obvious before she says anything, indeed, this is the one person you were bound to catch the attention of regardless, a person with next to no shame, and who definitely had not left the premises yet...

"Sure, you know what? I'll grace everyone with my presence!"

She leaps forward from the waves, an explosion of water tumbling down in her wake-!

Yes.

It's Anima...

"What's the occasion? Birthday party? Successful heist? Post-fishing celebration?"

...A really shameless variant of Anima...

Acting like... None of the earlier violence had happened...

Voice very cheery, very buddy buddy...

"..."

It's such a slap that both Isamu and Tsukiko just... Stare at her in obvious disbelief, while Noriko...

"...Huh."

She blinks.

"This one uh... She's very lively...?"

Just seems confused...